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Shipped to retailers: N Scale International Car Bay Window Cabooses.
Over the years the design of the bay windows evolved and Bluford Shops is presenting four phases of these designs plus the iconic half-bay window edition. All five will be represented in this announcement. Ladders and running boards will be included on appropriate paint schemes for each version. The ready-to-run models will feature magnetically operating knuckle couplers, metal wheels, wire grab irons, window “glass”, and plenty of weight. MSRP: $39.95 each. See your dealer.
Peoria & Eastern was a regional subsidiary of the New York Central System. For much of its existence, it was controlled by fellow NYC subsidiary Big Four but well after the Big Four name was retired, the Peoria & Eastern retained a semblance of independence with their own reporting marks and often their full name on freight cars along side that of their parent. This pair of P&E half-bay window cabooses received NYC’s “Road To The Future” motto. This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.
40100 Peoria & Eastern - NYC green #21498. $39.95
40101 Peoria & Eastern - NYC green #21499. $39.95
This pair of Conrail Phase I cabooses was built for the Erie, joining the Conrail fleet by way of Erie Lackawanna and receiving the large version of the Conrail “can-opener” logo shortly after their April, 1976 launch. Later, cooler heads would prevail and a smaller can-opener that fit entirely to the left of the bay window was adopted. Those early months were a time for high hopes and big statements. This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.
41060 Conrail large logo #21108. $39.95
41061 Conrail large logo #21110. $39.95
Erie Lackawanna inherited this group of Phase I cabooses from the Erie (built by International Car in 1953.) This red paint scheme was adopted at the time of the EL merger and applied to almost the entire fleet before being replaced in EL’s final years by a scheme that reversed EL’s locomotive colors. This road name will be available in 3 road numbers.
41070 Erie Lackawanna red #C330. $39.95
41071 Erie Lackawanna red #C322. $39.95
41075 Erie Lackawanna red #C345. $39.95
In 1962, the Georgia & Florida Railway was purchased by the Southern Railway System and its shares were divided between three of Southern’s other railroad subsidiaries. The G&F ran 500 miles from Greenwood, South Carolina to northern Florida. Southern Railway influence quickly spread to the G&F including paint schemes, caboose designs and lettering styles. It was typical for equipment from all of Southern Railway’s many subsidiaries to wander the greater Southern system. This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.
41080 Georgia & Florida yellow bay #X3201. $39.95
41081 Georgia & Florida yellow bay #X6900. $39.95
Reading & Northern is a 300 mile regional railroad in eastern Pennsylvania that was born from the expansion and reorganization of the Blue Mountain & Reading Railroad in 1990. In fact, the full name of the company is Reading Blue Mountain & Northern (which explains their RBMN reporting marks) but the Blue Mountain is omitted from most of the equipment. These two RBMN cabooses are both Phase I cars but from very different origins. Car 92846 is a former Southern Railway car while car 92847 had been originally built for the Erie.
41090 Reading & Northern #92846. $39.95
41091 Reading & Northern #92847. $39.95
After Southern Railway switched from boxcar red to caboose red for their Phase I cabooses, they also began painting the bay windows yellow on cabooses assigned to locals. Presumably these cars lacked all of the amenities of road service cabooses since they would be used for out-and-back runs in a single shift. This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.
41100 Southern yellow bay #X260. $39.95
41101 Southern yellow bay #X271. $39.95
This group of Canadian Pacific Phase II bay window cabooses is proof against the idea that bay window cabooses are a relatively late development. CP took delivery of these cars in the summer of 1948. In fact they pre-date the International Car Phase II design that would look so similar. For this run, we present these cars in their original colors of mineral red with caboose red ends in 3 road numbers.
42090 Canadian Pacific as delivered #437265. $39.95
42091 Canadian Pacific as delivered #437266. $39.95
42095 Canadian Pacific as delivered #437267. $39.95
 
Pittsburgh & Lake Erie took delivery of these Phase II bay window cabooses in 1960 in this bc red paint scheme despite the fact that parent New York Central System had adopted their Century Green colors and cigar band logo three years before. Had they been built in NYC’s Despatch Shops, they most certainly would have been green but P&LE ordered these cars from International Car and specified the old colors. This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.
42100 Pittsburgh & Lake Erie bc red #510. $39.95
42101 Pittsburgh & Lake Erie bc red #517. $39.95
This car joined the Wisconsin Central roster with WC’s 1993 acquisition of the Green Bay & Western. The windows were all blanked, the car repainted and renumbered WC 19 and it was pressed into service as a shoving platform. This is the only WC caboose to appear in this paint scheme.
42110 Wisconsin Central shoving platform #19. $39.95
This group of Chicago & North Western Phase III cabooses was built by International Car between 1966 and 1968. They were on their second or third paint schemes by the time they received this version in Zito yellow with the fluttering U.S. flag and “Pulling Together” motto. Another feature of this paint scheme is the odd 3-box format of consolidated stencils. This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.
43040 Chicago & North Western Pulling Together #11106. $39.95
43041 Chicago & North Western Pulling Together #11150. $39.95

The CSX merger happened in stages with the holding companies for the Chessie System roads and the Family Lines roads combining in 1980 followed by the Family Lines roads combining into Seaboard System in 1983. It was 1986 before locomotives and rolling stock began to appear in CSX colors (at first with their predecessor’s reporting marks.) Old school caboose operations were already waning but a need persisted for a modest fleet that would receive CSX colors. CSX inherited Phase IV bay window cabooses from C&O, B&O and L&N. This road name will be available in 3 road numbers:
44160 CSX YN2 scheme #900413. $39.95

44161 CSX YN2 scheme #900414. $39.95
44165 CSX YN2 scheme #900415. $39.95
The Route Rock image was adopted by Rock Island as part of the reorganization following their 1975 bankruptcy. The company had last turned a profit in 1964, then became entangled in an aborted merger with Union Pacific. The merger failed due to Rock’s unique position straddling the St. Louis – Kansas City – Colorado Springs border that divided railroads of the northern plains states from the railroads of the southern plains states. A Rock Island merger would send a shock wave of traffic diversions through the middle third of the country and led to every railroad in the region to demand concessions. This combined with long delays for Federal approval caused merger talks to collapse. Rock Island closed for good in 1980 and this group of Phase IV cabooses was transferred to Union Pacific (who had paid for them and leased them to The Rock.) This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.
44170 Route Rock blue #17154. $39.95
44171 Route Rock blue #17185. $39.95
Products bearing Western Pacific and Chicago & North Western marks are made under trademark license from Union Pacific Railroad Company.
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Illinois Terminal took delivery of this group half-bay window cabooses in late 1953. Originally delivered in caboose red, they were later repainted in several variations of green and silver with yellow lettering as we see here. The road numbers represented in this release received snazzy racing stripes as well. The Road of Personalized Services motto is on the other side of the bay window on the reverse side of the car. This road name will be available in 2 road numbers.

40090  Illinois Terminal Road of Personalized Services #981.  $39.95

40091  Illinois Terminal Road of Personalized Services #985.  $39.95

The Union Railroad serves the steel mills of the Monongahela River Valley south of Pittsburgh. The Union is just 31 miles long but very busy. In 1951, they hauled 74 million net tons making URR the busiest freight railroad per mile of track in the world. Today, Union serves the USS Edgar Thomson Works which includes blast furnaces, a basic oxygen processor producing molten steel and a continuous caster. They also serve the USS Irvin Works which includes rolling mills and finishing lines and USS Clairton Works which converts coal into coke. This group of Phase IV cabooses was delivered in the same red as used on sister road Bessemer & Lake Erie but they were later repainted in this high-visibility yellow and red. Each of the 2 road numbers has a unique safety slogan.
44180 Union Railroad Long Chances Shorten Lives #C102. $39.95
44181 Union Railroad No One Hurt On My Shift #C104. $39.95
Western Pacific took delivery of this group of International Car Phase IV cabooses in 1973. These were the first new cabooses delivered in caboose red, replacing the much browner mineral red used on earlier orders. It’s worth noting that some subsequent caboose repaints into this scheme had black roofs but we are presenting the original International Car factory red roofs for this run. This road name will be available in 3 road numbers.
44190 Western Pacific red/black #466. $39.95
44191 Western Pacific red/black #468. $39.95
44195 Western Pacific red/black #475. $39.95